Here’s a Tufted Puffin from my recently concluded Saint Paul Island Workshop. Birds often bring nesting material back to the nest, and I have seen my share of plastic waste, so this one came together nicely when the bird’s pose, background and that feather all aligned in a pleasing way :)
Tufted Puffin LANDING
Tufted Puffin Landing (Fratercula cirrhata, Macareux huppé, TUPU) Saint Paul Island, The Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea, Alaska. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. Sony Alpha a9 Mirrorless Camera & Sony FE100-400 F4.5-5.6 G Master OSS with 1.4X Tele-extender @ 560mm. Full frame image. ISO 10,000, f/8 @ 1/1,600s Manual exposure mode.
Parakeet Auklet THE FOOT
Snowy Owl from Saint Paul Island Workshop
Male Snowy Owl SAINT PAUL BLAST-OFF (Bubo scandiacus, Harfang des neiges, SNOW) Saint Paul Island, The Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea, Alaska. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. Canon EOS Canon EOS 1DX, 600mm F4 L IS II, 2X Extender III, Tripod & Jobu Jr. 3 ISO 4,000s, f/9 @ 1/3,200s Manual mode. PURCHASE A PRINT or LICENSE IMAGE FOR PUBLICATION HERE.
We had an awesome time photographing the beautiful male Snowy Owl one morning during my Saint Paul Island workshop. The owl was much more tolerant of our presence than I expected, and kept taking-off to hunt Least Auklets along the shore, only to return to perch near us each time it failed. Finding this, and the Lesser White-fronted Goose the next day is a testament to the diverse and rare birds of Saint Paul Island.
It's not too late to learn bird photography!
If you want to learn bird photography at the very best place in the world for me to teach it, then it's not too late. I have just announced that I'll be returning to Bonaventure Island to teach another Gannet Galore workshop from August 21-23, 2013. This is the best time to photograph the babies and all of the usual Gannet behaviour. Do take the time to read one of the many testimonials from this workshop - if I could recommend a single workshop for you to learn the most, this is it! There is something to photograph from dawn to dusk and the birds in flight opportunities will not disappoint! Click the link for more information or to sign-up: Gannets Galore August 21-23, 2013
Testimonial
My very first birding workshop (Gannet Galore on Bonaventure Island) with a new lens AND camera was filled with much anxiety until the thorough briefing prior to our 1st shoot. After meeting Chris for the introduction to exposing to the right, the Sunny 16 rule and its variances, and the promise of capturing some bird images HE would be proud to call his own my mind was set to rest. I have only been in photography for 3 years and still struggle with exposure, composition, and sharp focusing(especially when bobbing in a Zodiac) but there I was actually able to come away with some great images of Razorbills on the fly! Chris is one of best teachers of photography and wildlife habits I have ever had the pleasure to be around, his knowledge of the Northern Gannets Colony and Bonaventure Island is exceptional. I have already signed on for my next workshop with him, his enthusiasm for wildlife is contagious!
Mel Geer Saint Simons Island, Georgia, USA